Lend Me Your Strength
by Wasabi-kun
Summary: She crept in the shadows, working through the days to ensure they would never have to endure the tragedy of their destiny. She alone knew what the stakes were, how imperative it was that her mission succeed. She only needed a little bit of a push. "Lend me... your strength..." (I do not own Fairy Tail.)


She watched as he fought the Sabertooth dragonslayers alone, a dangerous smile on his face and a determined fire in his eyes. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes as she saw him, feeling as though she was in a dream. A single tear fell down her cheek as she remembered this day, less clearly than she saw it now; it was like a memory from years past, fleeting and indistinct. She willed herself not to cry. As the two dragonslayers fell, he stood before them and roared in triumph, standing firm and strong in the midst of the destruction their battle had caused.

It was only when he smiled brightly that she finally broke, tears cascading down her cheeks. She covered her face with her left hand, if only to contain the sobs that threatened to explode from her chest. She turned away from the sight of him and stood in the shadows of the stadium exit, tears falling less frequently now. Her heart felt as though it would shatter into a million pieces if she dared to look at his face-_their_ faces-once more.

She pulled her cloak tighter around herself and slipped out the exit, a new resolve burning in her soul. She would not allow _it_ to happen again.

* * *

She hid within the surging crowd, trying to lose the blue-haired mage that had been relentlessly following her for the better part of an hour. A passing Rune Knight squadron led by a scarred man allowed her the time she needed to escape, surrounding him in an instant. She looked back only once, seeing an old man in the middle with the blue-haired man.

She sighed and turned around once more, ducking into a dark and abandoned alleyway. She huffed and pulled the hood of her cloak firmly over her head, determined to remain unseen by anyone lest her identity be given away. This mission required the utmost stealth and caution, and it was wearing her down. The only thing that kept her going was that if all went according to plan, they would be alright.

She snuck back onto the street and continued to her destination, firm in her decision. She must save them.

* * *

"Stop."

She started in surprise, not having noticed the presence of the blue-haired man. She heard him shift some sort of clothing item before speaking again. "I'll show you who I am. Show me your face, too."

She stood for a few moments, pondering whether she should turn around and face him or not. If he spoke to anyone else regarding her identity, her mission would be jeopardized and _that_ would happen again. Was it worth it?

She turned around slowly and lifted her face into the light where he could see it. She gave him a shy smile, eyes filling with tears at the nostalgic memories. He took a step back and gasped in shock. "No way!"

"Hey, Jellal."

* * *

She sat on a stone staircase, thinking about what her next move might help accomplish. She pulled out a notebook and a pen, popping the cap off with her mouth. She began to write as quickly as she dared, hoping to get the information onto the small piece of paper in time. She wrote shakily with her left hand, trying to make the writing at least slightly legible.

"Hey! This is a 'No Trespassing' area!"

A guard that had been patrolling called out to her, startling her enough to drop the notebook. She jumped up and ran off into the night, leaving the guard puffing behind her. Her notebook was left behind, but there was nothing she could do about that. She could hear him shouting behind her before suddenly becoming silent, and she knew he had found and read the information on the notebook. There was no doubt in her mind that he wouldn't understand a word of it.

She continued on into the night, praying that she would still succeed.

* * *

She stood before a huge set of doors, the ones leading to the place she knew they were in. She paced up and down outside the doors, waiting for the right moment to open them and contemplating what she would say. It would be hard, she knew, but it was necessary to prevent _that_ from happening again. She halted as she heard noises on the other side of the doorway, heart almost stopping when she heard their voices once more.

"-didn't he."

"-herself threw us in here!"

She threw open the massive doors in time to see him trip over himself in surprise while stating, "It opened?!"

"Why?"

"Is it a trap?"

He tumbled toward her with a strangled yell, skidding to a halt in front of her feet. She studied his wary expression and those of his companions, her throat tightening as a sob threatened to come out. She looked at his face again as he asked, suspicion in his eyes, "Who are you?"

She could feel her heart wavering at the sight of them, her memories clashing with what she saw before her. It was more painful than she could have ever imagined. Finally, she could no longer hide her tears and she began to sob softly. She could not see their faces anymore for the melancholy tears were blurring her vision. "Sorry…"

She could not bear to look at them, fearing that their meeting was just a dream or hallucination. She covered her face with her left hand, tears falling faster, her weakness finally being released in a whirlwind of emotion. She might not have the power to continue on. "Lend me… your strength…"

"That voice…"

"Uh?"

"You are…"

She pulled her hood back with the only arm she had, tears still streaming down her face. The mages' faces were shocked and surprised; even her own, the one that had not yet seen the horrors of what was to come.

"EEEEHHH?!"

"LUCYYYYY?!"

His voice and the sound of her own were like a bomb to her heart and she continued to weep, still determined to save them yet unable to move from her stance, caught between two realities in her mind. She wiped away the tears and sniffed softly until there were only tear tracks on her cheeks. She moved toward the group with tenacity, intent on her purpose, her mission, her duty to her family. '_For Levy-chan… for Wendy… for Master… for Erza… for Gray… for Natsu… for Fairy Tail…_'

'_Please… lend me your strength._'


End file.
